


Echolocation

by meridianpony



Series: Dominoes Crack [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Animal Transformation, Crack-ish?, Fluff, Gen, Sleepy Cuddles, This is ridiculous, but it was too cute to resist, echolocation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:47:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28246401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meridianpony/pseuds/meridianpony
Summary: Cutup has been a loth-cat for two entire rotations, and as fun as it is to have claws, he’s getting a little tired of it.
Series: Dominoes Crack [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881067
Comments: 16
Kudos: 235





	Echolocation

**Author's Note:**

> My writing has felt so rusty recently, so I thought it would be good to write something less serious before diving back into crazy stuff. So I went back and found this age-old prompt that someone sent me months ago when I was asking for drabble prompts and I decided that I needed to write more domino squad loth cats! And now here we are! Pt. 2 of Domino squad turned into cats!
> 
> For the prompts; Ahsoka needs some loth cat cuddles too, preferably with Cutup but a kitty pile would be amazing as well

Cutup has been a loth-cat for two entire rotations, and as fun as it is to have claws, he’s getting a little tired of it. General Kenobi is searching for a solution to the problem, but he hasn’t had any luck yet. In the meantime, the 501st has found plenty of entertainment in carting the feline Domino squad around like a squad of tiny mascots. 

Cutup’s batchmates are all dealing with the change in different ways. Fives and Hevy have long since found hiding spots to escape from the constant attention. Fives is quite fond of the ventilation system by the mess hall because the air ducts there are too narrow for anyone else to squeeze through. Hevy likes to sit up on the little ledge above the door of the range and watch as various squads roll through to practice. He’s quiet enough that generally no one notices, and even if they do they can’t get him down without getting clawed. Droidbait enjoys the attention and seeks it out endlessly, while Echo seems to be taking the opportunity to catch up on some much-needed sleep. He spends most of the day curled up as a tiny ball of fluff on various bunks in the barracks, and he doesn’t seem to give one singular kriff about whose bed he occupies. No one has the heart to move him, anyway.

Cutup doesn’t mind the attention as long as he occasionally gets a break. And as long as no one rubs him the wrong way, literally—he hates it, it sends unpleasant shivers up his spine and he can’t help but snap at whoever is touching him. 

Cutup is busy resisting the urge to lick himself (Ugh. Weird.) during one of his self-imposed breaks, perched on the table in the barracks, when the door slides open. Automatically Cutup goes still, preparing himself to scamper for freedom if he has to, but the squeak of excitement that he hears is… far too high-pitched for it to be a brother. He perks up his ears and twists to see the entrance. 

Commander Tano is frozen in the doorway, a look of unholy glee on her face. 

“Oh, _Force,”_ she squeals. 

“Commander?” Cutup says nervously, forgetting for a moment that she can’t understand him. His high-pitched mew only seems to excite her further. She bounces up and down on her toes and darts forwards. In an instant she’s next to him. Cutup bristles involuntarily at the sudden movement, but he forces himself to relax. He trusts Commander Tano far more than he trusts his brothers in this situation—at least he knows that she won’t try and take advantage of him while he’s small like this.

Commander Tano lowers herself down to his level and reaches out. One careful hand strokes tentatively over Cutup’s back. She watches him for his reaction and presses just a bit more firmly when Cutup doesn’t make any moves to pull away. 

“So soft,” she marvels. She makes a little gasp of delight when she finds the faintest of markings across his fur—they’re her own, after all.

“Cutup,” she says with a grin. Cutup purrs out a quiet affirmative, warm pride flickering through his chest at the recognition. Her smile widens. Clever fingers scratch behind Cutup’s ears.

“You’re _so small_. Rex really wasn’t kidding. I thought he was joking when he told me after I got back from that escort mission!”

“I’m not that small,” Cutup huffs, even though he kind of is. She seems to pick up on his annoyance anyway.

“Alright, I get it, you’re not helpless.” Not quite what he’d said, but close enough. Her laugh sounds strange in Cutup’s ears, full of odd vibrations that Cutup has never heard before. He pricks up his ears to hear it better, but it’s gone as quickly as it had started. “You’ve got these, after all. And those teeth look sharp.” She taps one of Cutup’s paws with a finger. He instinctively tucks said paw under his belly, but he can’t help but bare his teeth in agreement. The built-in weapons are a nice touch.

She chuckles, and there’s that strange vibration again. Cutup shoots to his feet this time, tail twitching as he tracks the sound. Commander Tano tilts her head in confusion. Her hand hovers over Cutup’s swiveling ears.

“Are you alright?” she asks him. He wishes he could roll his eyes—not being able to communicate is frustrating. All he can do is stare at her expectantly and wait. The sound had seemed to be coming from her somehow, but how is that possible?

“Oh!” she says suddenly. “Oh, I think—you can hear that? Really?” Her eyes narrow in concentration. The sound comes again, louder this time. Cutup tries to follow it and ends up at the edge of the table, staring towards her head in confusion. The tips of her lekku sway in front of his eyes. It’s tempting to bat at them, but he tries to stay focused.

“Well, loth-cats do have superior hearing to humans,” Commander Tano muses. “I guess it makes sense that you could hear it. Can I—can I pick you up?”

Cutup’s neck isn’t really designed to nod, but he does his best. She reaches down and scoops him up. She doesn’t take him far. In fact, all she does is lift him up and deposit him on top of her head, right in the little indent in between her montrals. He scrabbles for a safe hold without using his claws. The last thing he wants to do is cut her.

“Are you gonna fall?” she asks him, hands hovering carefully nearby just in case. Cutup’s tail lashes as he steadies himself.

“No,” he says determinedly. “I’m good.” She doesn’t respond—instead she waits until he’s settled and unmoving to finally move her hands away.

“Alright, hang on,” Commander says, voice warm with amusement. She goes still, and then—it feels like her entire head starts to _vibrate_. Cutup nearly falls right off in surprise. It takes a moment, but he realizes that it isn’t her entire head—just her montrals. Now that he’s perched on top of them, the subtle vibrations in the hollow structures ripple through his chest like waves.

“What—?” he starts to say in confusion. It almost feels like… how it did when he had curled up with the rest of Domino squad on their first day of being loth-cats, when they had been warm and content and relaxed for the first time in ages. His batchmates’ purrs had lulled him to sleep. Somehow these new vibrations are recalling those memories to the forefront of his mind. 

Is… is Commander Tano… purring?

Hesitantly, he lets out a purr of his own. It makes Commander Tano’s shoulders shake as she lets out a giggle.

“That kind of tickles!” Cutup does it again just to bug her and lets out a smug huff when she pokes at him half-heartedly.

“It’s echolocation,” Commander Tano explains cheerfully. “Normally no one notices when I do it. Humanoids can’t hear or see the vibrations at all, but I guess you can now. You’re small enough to feel it, too.” The vibrations start up again. Cutup relaxes into the sensation, hunkering down on top of her head. His purr is involuntary this time. Commander Tano shuffles her feet but doesn’t do anything to express any sort of discomfort.

“Gonna take a nap up there?” she asks him, grin practically audible.

“Maybe,” Cutup grunts, curling himself up into a ball. It’s tempting. Oh so tempting. She’s warm and the vibrations are soothing. He definitely _could._

“I can’t promise I’ll hold still enough.” Even as she speaks her head lolls to the side ever so slightly. She brings her hands up again to make sure Cutup doesn’t fall as she sits down at the table. He shifts stubbornly to maintain his spot in between her montrals. She doesn’t speak again, just allows another burst of echolocation to resonate through her skull. Cutup’s eyes slide shut.

He does fall asleep. He isn’t sure if he’s there for minutes or hours. It’s only when Commander Tano eventually has to turn her head towards the barracks door that he wakes up, tail twitching irritably at the disturbance. Commander Tano moves slowly as to not dislodge him, but the vibrations peter off anyway. Cutup hears the clicking of tiny claws against the durasteel floor. He cracks his eyes open. 

“Oh,” Commander Tano squeaks in delight.

“Cutup? What the kriff are you doing up there?” Echo sounds incredulous. Fives, Hevy, and Droidbait are with him. Cutup can’t see Commander Tano’s face from his perch, but he can imagine her enthusiasm at his batchmate’s appearance.

“Guys. You’ve got to try this,” Cutup hums languidly, annoyance briefly forgotten.

“Try what, exactly?” Fives sounds skeptical. Before Cutup can answer, Commander Tano lurches forwards, bending down. Cutup yelps at the sudden movement. For an instant he tumbles towards the floor, but Commander Tano is quick to catch him.

“Sorry, sorry!” She sets him down next to Hevy. Cutup waves his tail in the air to grab everyone’s attention and then stares up at her pleadingly.

“Just listen,” he tells his batchmates eagerly. “Listen to what she can do.”

It takes a moment, but eventually the Commander figures out what he wants. Her smile shifts into something amused. The vibrations sound. Cutup watches all four of his batchmates tilt their heads at the exact same time.

“Wait, what is that?” Droidbait asks, eyes wide.

“Echolocation, she said. It kind of feels like she’s purring,” Cutup explains.

“I could show you?” Commander Tano suggests, holding one hand towards them like an offering. Hevy darts forwards eagerly, but Fives pounces on him before he can get far. They go tumbling in a ball of fur and flailing paws. Droidbait takes advantage of their chaos to butt his head against Commander Tano’s fingers. She scoops him up and cuddles him against her chin. Hevy and Fives’ battle slows and then comes to a stop. They flatten their ears in disappointment. 

“Ohhh,” Commander Tano squeals yet again. Without hesitation she shifts Droidbait into one hand and grabs Hevy in the other. Hevy goes willingly for the first time since their transformation, flicking his ears smugly at Fives. “I don’t—I don’t have enough hands—!”

“Oh, come on,” Fives hisses, tail lashing impatiently. “Hevy, you son of a Hutt, that’s not fair!” 

“You were the one to kriffing attack me, how is that unfair?”

Fives hisses at him, so Echo bats him across the ears with one of his front paws. Commander Tano chokes on a laugh.

“Force, please don’t fight over who goes first, ha!”

They all freeze. Cutup straightens as best as he’s able in quadruped form, puffing out his chest. His batchmates still on the ground do the same thing. 

“Yes, sir!” 

If anything, their attempts to stand at attention just make Commander Tano giggle more. She sets Hevy and Droidbait down and glances around the barracks. Eventually her gaze settles on Droidbait’s bunk. 

“Here, look, okay. I’ve got a better idea.” When she moves away from the table Cutup and his batchmates trail after her curiously. “Droidbait, can I sit here?” 

Droidbait doesn’t even attempt to truly speak, just vocalizes a tiny little mew and waves his tail in affirmative. Commander Tano grins and plops down. She pats the mattress with one hand. 

“Can you get up here?”

“Of course we can!” Hevy says, looking slightly insulted. He crouches, and ends up wiggling his entire backside during his takeoff preparations. He makes the jump easily enough. His claws snag in the sheets as he stabilizes himself, and Droidbait groans. 

“Just a _little_ bit undignified,” Echo snorts under his breath, but considering the fact that they’re _loth-cats_ at the moment, Cutup feels like it’s justified. 

Once the rest of them have all made it up to Droidbait’s bunk, Commander Tano beckons them closer. It’s harder to walk on the mattress, especially with four limbs that none of them are entirely used to yet. There’s a lot of clambering all over each other as they go. Cutup gets a tail in his mouth and a hind leg in the belly simultaneously. He nearly yowls in protest until Commander Tano laughs again and reaches out to assist them. 

If it were a brother, Cutup gets the sense that this would be humiliating, somehow. Sure, they’ve got claws and teeth, but they don’t do that much. As these tiny creatures, Domino squad is helpless. It wouldn’t take much for any of them to get injured, but Commander Tano is so gentle, so kind. It just makes Cutup feel secure, somehow. She’ll protect them. She isn’t doing this to blackmail them later, either. 

Commander Tano lays back and lets Domino squad cluster around her head, curling as close as they can to her montrals. Cutup hangs back so that his batchmates have more room. He can tell when Commander Tano lets loose a bout of echolocation, because all four of his brothers jerk in surprise before letting out purrs in response. Commander Tano giggles uncontrollably for a moment before getting herself under control. 

“It makes my echolocation go all fuzzy,” she explains with a laugh. “It’s even weirder with four of you than it was with just Cutup.” 

Cutup looks up and catches a glimpse of Fives sticking his tongue out mindlessly to lick Echo’s flank before recoiling a little, ears twitching in frustration. Echo had theorized that the longer they’re stuck like this, the more feline instincts are going to start showing up. It’s been true so far. It’s amusing at times, but can be just as easily infuriating. 

“You know, if you want, I can stay here for a few minutes,” Commander Tano says lightly. “I just got back, I’m on leave for a little bit. I don’t have anywhere to be.”

No one actually answers her, but the chorus of purrs increases in volume. Commander Tano’s grin widens. She shifts her legs to get comfortable, and Cutup realizes that if his own experience is anything to go by, they’ll probably be here a while. 

Cutup turns in a lazy circle, searching for the best place to lie down. His paws knead gently at the mattress. Before he can find a good spot, Commander Tano wriggles her fingers at him. She stares at him the best she can without dislodging the kitten pile crowded around her head. 

“Come on,” she whispers. Cutup tilts his head at her. Where does she want him to go? There’s no more space up by her montrals. She lifts an arm slowly and taps her hand against the space right above her shoulder, next to one of her lekku. Cutup hesitates, but she wriggles her fingers again and he’s moving before he even realizes it.

He can still feel the faint vibrations of her montrals when he tucks himself against the lek. Commander Tano scratches in between his ears. Cutup curls himself tighter into a warm ball and sighs at the combination of peaceful sensations. 

He drifts. He’s vaguely aware of the murmur of voices as scattered members of Beta squad make their way through the barracks at different times, but thankfully no one bothers them. There’s a brief moment of discomfort when Hardcase, Nax, and Tipper walk in together, conversing loudly about how to jury-rig a power converter so that it fits Hardcase’s Z-6, but a curt word from Coric in the corner has them going quiet again. 

Of course it can’t last forever, but at least with Commander Tano with them, they aren’t rudely awakened by teasing brothers. Commander Tano’s comm goes off, piercingly loud in Cutup’s sensitive ears. He flinches. Commander Tano swears and smacks her hand down to answer it. 

“Master?”

_“Hey, Snips. I’ve got good news.”_

“What happened?”

_“Obi-Wan’s got a lead on your squad’s, uh, transformation problem. It’s not a solution yet, but we’re getting there. Can you come up to the bridge?”_

Commander Tano sighs and sits up, stretching as she goes. Cutup makes a muffled noise at the loss of warmth. His batchmates don’t fare any better. Fives lets out a lazy _mrow_ sound of complaint that absolutely would have embarrassed him had he been awake enough to comprehend it. Droidbait, still completely asleep, stretches a paw out and bops Echo in the nose, who sneezes. Hevy startles awake. 

“Sure, Master, I’ll be there in a minute. Should I bring Domino squad, too?” 

_“If you can find a way to do it safely, sure.”_

“I can just have Beta squad carry them, I guess.”

Cutup winces. Force, the indignity. Though he supposes it’s better than getting trampled underfoot by an unsuspecting battalion. 

“Oh, noooo,” Hevy groans dejectedly. Commander Tano seems to get the jist of his complaint, covering her grin with one hand as she ends the conversation with General Skywalker. 

“It’s just for a minute, Hevy,” she tells him. Hevy hisses weakly, tail drooping in resignation. Hevy hates being picked up, far more than the rest of them. Beta squad thinks it’s hilarious. 

Cutup gets to work rousing the rest of his batchmates while Commander Tano gets to her feet with another stretch and begins to explain the situation to the members of Beta squad still hanging around. When the Commander finally comes back to them, she picks up Echo in one hand and Cutup in the other. 

“Alright, come on. Let’s figure this out,” she says determinedly. Cutup waves his tail in agreement, held safely in her hand. The corridors seem to fly past him as Commander Tano walks. The first time Cutup had been carried, his tiny heart had threatened to burst out of his chest in fear that he would be dropped. Now, secure with the knowledge that Commander Tano will protect his squad, he’s certain that he’s never felt more safe. 

**Author's Note:**

> ;alsdkja;dlfk lame abrupt ending is lame but oh well, this isn't anything serious by any means so its fine ha
> 
> Thank you for indulging me and reading this ridiculousness.!! As a reminder this is not connected to the real Dominoes plotline haha this is just for fun! Thank you for reading, though! I'm working on updating other things as well, so stay tuned for more! Love yall! <3 @meridiansdominoes on tumblr for more!


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